Child marriages accounted for 32 per cent of all marriages in the country from 1987 to 2005. PHOTO:FILE

ISLAMABAD: Marriage at an early age is a harsh reality for many young women, with dire repercussions for them, their children and the community. Still, according to UNICEF, child marriages accounted for 32 per cent of all marriages in the country from 1987 to 2005.

During a consultative meeting that was held to discuss the sensitive topic on Monday, it was shared that not much is expected to change in the next decade if the government does not take the issue seriously. Around 100 million girls are expected to enter into child marriage in the next decade, it was said.

Participants got together to map out the social, medical and legal work being done to decrease the prevalence of child marriages.

Qindeel Shujaat, legal adviser on human rights, said that while there are laws to prevent child marriages, the Child Marriages Restraint Act 1929 hasn’t been modified in 82 years. “The punishment for violating the law is a fine of Rs1,000, or one month imprisonment. If a marriage involving children takes place, the adults are punished, but the marriage is not dissolved,” she said. However, according to Shujaat, the law’s implementation is non-existentant.